Mariners 11, Joes 8
Grand Lake built an early cushion and withstood a late Hamilton push to beat the Joes, 11–8, Friday night (June 6, 2026) in Celina.
How it unfolded
Grand Lake struck first in the opening inning when Huston Dunn's sacrifice fly brought home Matthew Aldridge for a 1–0 lead. The game swung hard in the second: the Mariners plated five runs, helped along by two Hamilton errors and a big blow from Matthew Hutchinson, who launched a two-run homer to make it 6–0.
The Mariners kept adding on. In the fourth, a wild pitch brought in a run and Hutchinson followed with an RBI double to push the margin to 8–0. Hamilton finally answered in the fifth, scoring four—though the rally included unearned damage (a passed ball and defensive miscues). Kamden McAlpin delivered the key hit, a two-run single, and AJ Gundler added an RBI single to cut it to 8–4.
Grand Lake responded immediately with two runs in the sixth on back-to-back RBI walks from Landon Tiesing and Marek Bolson, restoring breathing room at 10–4. Hamilton chipped away again in the seventh on Owen McKoon's RBI single (10–5), but Dunn answered with an RBI single in the bottom half to make it 11–5.
Hamilton made the final inning interesting, scoring three in the ninth—McAlpin's sac fly RBI and Gundler's two-run double highlighted the push—but Matthew Aldridge recorded the final out to secure the 11–8 win and his first save.
Standout performances
Grand Lake Mariners
- Matthew Hutchinson: 4-for-4, 2 2B, HR, 3 RBI, 2 R, BB (the offensive centerpiece)
- Luke Wildes: 2-for-2, RBI, 2 R (also started on the mound with 3 scoreless)
- Huston Dunn: 1-for-1, 2 RBI, BB (plus a sac fly RBI)
- Mariners drew 10 walks and scored despite leaving 10 on base.
Hamilton Joes
- AJ Gundler: 2-for-4 with a 2B, 3 RBI, BB (sparked both mid-game and late rallies)
- Kamden McAlpin: 1-for-4, 3 RBI, BB, and 3 stolen bases
- Owen McKoon: 2-for-4, RBI, SB
- Hamilton's comeback chances were hurt by 2 errors and multiple unearned runs on both sides.
Pitching summary
- Win: Alex Dues (Grand Lake) improved to 2–0, working 2 innings with 3 strikeouts while limiting damage in the middle frames.
- Save: Matthew Aldridge (0.1 IP) closed it out.
- Loss: Samuel Rufenacht (Hamilton) took the loss, tagged for 6 runs (5 earned) in 1.1 innings as Grand Lake's second inning broke the game open.
- Hamilton's staff issued 10 walks, a major factor in Grand Lake's 11-run output.
Final: Grand Lake Mariners 11, Hamilton Joes 8.